1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to stringed musical instruments of the type having an instrument body, a neck extending therefrom, and a plurality of strings attached at one end to the instrument body and at the other to the neck. More particularly the present invention relates to an adjustable arrangement for mounting the neck of the instrument to the body.
2. Background Art
Many stringed instruments, for example guitars, banjos, violins, cellos etc, include a body to which is attached, and from which extends, a neck. The strings are attached at one end to an end of the neck and at the other end to the body with the strings extending along and above a fingerboard surface of the neck. In use a player presses and clamps the strings against the fingerboard surface of the neck to alter the effective length of the string and change the pitch of the string. An important consideration in such a stringed instrument, and characteristic of how the instrument ‘plays’ is the height of the strings over the fingerboard of the neck, and so how far a player has to press the strings (the ‘action’ of the instrument). Different players may prefer different string heights. In addition, and relatedly, the height of the strings over the body of the instrument alters the sound produced.
Conventionally the neck is rigidly fixed to the body of the instrument. However, and in order to allow adjustment of the height of the strings over the fingerboard and body of the instrument, it has been proposed to adjustably connect the neck to the body of the instrument so that it can be moved relative to the body and strings to alter the height of the strings over the fingerboard surface of the neck.
In addition an adjustable connection of the neck to the body may have other advantages. In particular it can reduce stresses that may be induced and transmitted between the body and neck that may arise with a fixed connection between the neck and body. An adjustable connection provides a mechanical break and interface between the neck and body, and also allows adjustment to take out any such stresses that may develop. An adjustable arrangement may also allow removal of the neck from the body making transportation of the instrument, and repair and replacement of the neck/body easier.
The design of a suitable adjustable neck connection is however a significant challenge. In particular it is important that the neck is rigidly connected to the body to both withstand the tension applied by the strings. Since any movement can alter the length and tension of the strings so altering the pitch, it is desirable that the adjustment and movement of the neck is such that it does not, significantly alter the distance and length of the strings attached to the neck. It is also desirable that the angle of the neck relative to the body is also maintained. Typically such adjustable necks are slidably mounted to move in a direction normal to the strings and fingerboard surface. In some cases however the adjustment of the angle of the neck relative to the body can also be provided. The neck adjustment must also not significantly alter the sound produced, and in particular should not add any buzz or rattle, which can be a problem when a mechanical movable assembly is incorporated into a musical instrument. The number of parts should therefore be kept to a minimum, and as always costs and ease of manufacture need to be considered. The adjustment must also be relatively easy to adjust, whilst also being secure to maintain the adjusted position under the relatively high loads arising in normal use.
In view of these multiple considerations, a number of different adjustable neck arrangements have been proposed. Examples of such adjustable neck arrangements are described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,051,766, U.S. Pat. No. 4,295,403, U.S. Pat. No. 4,432,267, U.S. Pat. No. 5,421,233, U.S. Pat. No. 3,204,510, U.S. Pat. No. 3,550,496, U.S. Pat. No. 6,265,648 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,469,770 amongst others. A particular arrangement is described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,157,634, and related publication US 2007/0107579. While these arrangements variously provide a suitable adjustable neck mounting(s) with various advantages, they also have a number of respective disadvantages and they can be improved. Indeed the number of prior proposals indicates that there is scope for such improvements and alternatives due to the challenging requirements.